Metal-ornament Artist Crafts Instant-antique Business

April 06, 1999|By Dave Barnes. Special to the Tribune.

HARVARD — Jacek Peczkowski may or may not be your typical life-of-the-party, but there's no denying that he's a talented "cutup."

Steel is this artist's medium. And with the help of a computer, an employee and a one-armed robot, Peczkowski and his wife, Gretchen, have built a thriving business converting 16-gauge steel plate into rusty accessories for America's homes and gardens.

Housed in part of the old Starline Manufacturing foundry in Harvard, the computer-driven robot works like a sophisticated cookie-cutter, carving two-dimensional shapes--ranging from rabbits to roosters, and horses to hippos--out of steel plate.

The shapes then are welded to 3-foot steel stakes to become garden ornaments. They are shipped to customers in at least 40 states.

"The garden stakes are the most popular," said Peczkowski, 35, but the American flag and, curiously enough, the state flag of Texas also are big sellers. "We've made thousands of these. The Lone Star flag sells everywhere across the county, not just in Texas."

Sconces, candleholders and other interior accessories also are in the product line. All undergo Peczkowski's "aging" process that gives them the prized antique look.

During the winter, the finished products are "aged" in a steam room to give them a patina of rust, after which they are sprayed with a clear coat. When the weather turns warm, Peczkowski moves the aging process to the driveway, where he douses his works with a garden hose.

Raised in Wrzesnia, Poland, Peczkowski fled in 1984 to Austria, where he met Gretchen, a Woodstock native who was in Europe on missionary work. They later married and moved to Marengo, where they now live with their two daughters, Ayla and Kyra.

For a time, Jacek Peczkowski traveled the country as an independent welding consultant, but being away from home grew old. So, the Peczkowskis launched a home-based venture, Steel Heart Ltd.

After trying to market steel and wood furniture with limited success, the Peczkowskis were approached by a friend, who asked them to make some jack-o'-lantern garden stakes. "She sold 60 of them in four hours," Gretchen Peczkowski said.